I Can See Green
by Wolfgrowl
Summary: Soul Mates AU, canon universe otherwise. In this universe you get the ability to see a color with each soul mate. Or the story of how Eren and Levi came to see green. (Please note that angst is tagged)


Eren is six when he first understands why finding soulmates is so important.

He's only seen the world in shades of gray, except for the sky, which is blue. And Armin's eyes. Those are blue. And apparently so is the ocean.

But he didn't understand why that was. Why he could see only blue. Why certain people, like his father, can't.

Until his neighbor starts sobbing because his shirt just turned gray. To Eren it was always gray. But to him it was red.

He is not surprised to find out that his girlfriend is coming home from the Survey Corps. Eren begins to understand why you want soul mates. They bring color to your life, the way Armin brought the ocean to his.

/

When Eren is nine he gains the ability to see red. The color of blood on his hands and the knife. And the color of his, no Mikasa's, scarf. It's such a vibrant color and Eren adjusts to having it. He thinks about his neighbor and understands why he misses it.

It's interesting to watch the sunset now, now that it has tints of red to it.

But he's beginning to understand why the Survey Corps always looks distraught when they return, now that he can see the red against the gray cloaks.

/

Eren lets out an ungodly screech when he realizes that he can see a new color.

It's been two years since the fall of Wall Maria. Eren hasn't gained a color since Mikasa. Now that puberty has hit Eren is worried he has found someone he's supposed to be romantically involved with.

It takes some work, but he figures out who his soul mate is, and if the first shriek was ungodly this one is purely demonic.

How is Jean Kirstein his soulmate?

Eren can see purple now which is why it took him so long to discover it. Purple dye is hard to come by and it's no wonder it took him a few weeks.

But Jean had to have known, after all he picked up two.

That's what relaxes Eren.

Jean picked up a new color with Marco as well.

He's still not sure what he did to get a horse for a soulmate but at least he's not his special soulmate.

In the end nothing really changes. He fights with Jean regularly, and basically forgets that they're soulmates, as does everyone else.

Except for the rare moments when he understands Jean. But that's about as often as he sees purple.

/

Eren didn't register it at first, but this time he was getting his face kicked in so it wasn't his fault.

It isn't until later that Eren realizes that he can see green, in Erwin's jacket and he gapes for a moment because wait, who's his soulmate?

His hero asks if Eren resents him and of course not.

Eren stares at him, and Levi narrows his eyes, staring at his eyes. But that's nothing new, a lot of people do that, those that can see color anyway.

Eren doesn't know what color his eyes are. He knows they're some shade of green with blue mixed in, that someone told him once. But he's never seen them for himself. He wants a mirror to see if he can see them now.

Later, Eren does stare at all the trees because now he can see the leaves. He can't believe this is what it looks like, it's amazing.

He's just glad he can finally see the Survey Corps cloaks.

And that's how he figures out who his soul mate is because one day Levi makes a comment about the color and Hanji squeals.

"Levi! Why didn't you say you could see green now?"

"Because it's none of your business."

"But I'm one of your soulmates."

"Unfortunately."

Eren's dropped his fork, which makes a loud sound against his plate, because only romantic soulmates get matching colors.

Everyone at the table goes silent and turns to stare at him, he gapes at Levi.

"You can see green now?"

Levi's eyes flicker, Eren briefly wonders if they're actually gray, before he runs off.

Petra looks slightly jealous but Auruo makes a comment that fixes that, because now she looks angry.

Hanji cackles and they gesture for Eren to chase after Levi.

Eren abandons his food because he needs to talk to his corporal, and in private.

/

"Of all the people to get stuck with…"

"I'm sorry sir."

Levi stops his ranting and turns to look at Eren, "what for?"

"That you're stuck with me…" Eren glances up and then back down.

Levi sighs, "I didn't mean you."

Eren stares at him and then it clicks, if he doesn't mean Eren then he means… "but sir who wouldn't want to be your soulmate?"

"Oh, right I'm still your hero."

Eren lets the comment slide, "sir…"

The corporal stares at him, and Eren takes a breath, "you saved my life. It wasn't conventional but you're risking a lot for me, and I appreciate it. Yes, you've been my hero for a long time and I'm honored to serve with you, but I never imagined that we'd be soulmates. And I would like to get to know you better, as my commander, comrade and soul mate, so please, let me come to my own conclusions!"

Levi raised an eyebrow, "loud aren't you?"

Eren clamped his jaws shut, but it looked like Levi's mouth twitched.

"Reminds me of another pain in the ass I knew."

Eren stares at him but apparently Levi doesn't feel like sharing that yet.

/

Eren tries to talk to Levi several times, but Levi usually worms his way out of it, asides from the aftermath of the spoon incident and that's of no comfort to Eren what so ever. Well it was comforting but it wasn't the conversation he wanted to have with Levi.

So when he sees his friends in the courtyard he's thrilled at the distraction.

Until Jean shows up, and Eren doesn't understand.

Even when Jean says Marco is gone Eren doesn't understand.

It's not until he's hugging Jean and Jean says he can't see yellow anymore that Eren truly understands Jean's pain and he hugs him tight because he can still see green.

He needs to talk to Levi.

/

Eren barges in to Levi's office, fortunately Commander Erwin isn't there. Or Hanji.

Levi looks up at him, and Eren swallows. He's been crying, Jean's tearstains are still on his jacket, but he needs to talk to Levi.

"Sir."

"Jaeger."

"Sir…" he swallows, "my friends just got back, but… one of them died in Trost. His soul mate can't see yellow anymore."

Levi stares at Eren, and Eren stares back, "but I can still see green and… you're not what I expected you to be, as Humanity's strongest or as my soul mate but you're you and I…" he isn't sure where he's going anymore, so he repeats himself, "I can still see green."

Levi nods, "come in Eren."

Eren shuts the door behind him, and pulls up a chair. He wipes away a tear before Levi throws a handkerchief at him.

"Do you want to start?"

Eren nods.

/

Eren knows a lot about Levi, he knows about his habits, some of his past in the Underground, how he came to join the Survey Corps, how Levi reacts when he hears about Eren's past, but he doesn't know what colors Levi can see. They haven't talked about that other than the fact they can both see green.

After the 57th expedition Eren avoids Levi at first, afraid he blames him for their comrade's deaths.

Finally, one night Eren goes down into the dungeon and finds Levi sitting on a stool, a lamp on the floor.

"I knew when Petra died."

Eren swallows, he knows Petra was one of Levi's soul mates.

"I can't see brown anymore."

Eren opens his mouth to apologize, to beg for forgiveness, to say something, but Levi isn't finished.

"But as someone told me once, I can still see green."

Eren closes his mouth, and nods.

After a moment, he gestures to his bed, "do you want to…"

"No." Levi's response it flat, "come on."

Eren follows without question back to Levi's quarters.

They sit on his bed instead.

And then they talk about colors.

Eren talks about blue, red and purple, and he sees Levi flinch when he mentions red. He assumes it's because red is associated with orange, until Levi speaks.

"Erwin isn't a soul mate, I didn't get anything from him. Shitty glasses is orange. I used to be able to see red and yellow."

Eren licks his lips and asks, "who…"

"Isabel and Farlan. They were… they were my family in the underground. Isabel was a lot like you, loud and always trouble. Farlan… Farlan was smart. He wasn't always brave. But he was smart."

Eren scoots closer to Levi, "tell me about them."

"Isabel was my sister, or she thought she was," Levi's mouth curled up, not quite a smile, "I didn't mind. She let me see red."

"Farlan was yellow."

It takes some coaxing but soon Eren knows about them too.

Then he tells Levi the full story of how he came to see the color red.

Levi is quiet for a moment and then says, "in the Underground once, there was this gang that harassed Isabel. She came home one night short a ponytail," he looks Eren in the eyes, "so I killed them."

Eren reaches forward but stops, afraid to touch Levi's hand.

So Levi closes the gap between their hands. And then Eren closes the gap between their lips.

It's his first kiss and it's messy but Eren loves it.

Just like he loves the one he gets the next morning. He's not sure when he and Levi fell asleep in Levi's bed, but it's clear that's where he's sleeping from here on out.

/

Levi lands on a tree branch, even he's slightly out of breath from this fight, and the Survey Corps got scattered.

Hanji drops next to him, they look disturbed.

"The titans are getting smarter. This was almost like an ambush. And they had a leader."

Levi nods to show he's heard but doesn't say anything because strategy is Erwin's foray. He's looking for his squad.

"Corporal Levi!"

It's Arlert and Kirchstien. They land near him and Hanji, he looks at both of them.

"Report."

"We've seen Mikasa, Sasha, and Sasha says Connie is fine," Jean reported.

"What about Reiss and Jaeger?"

"I haven't seen either of them." Armin admits.

Hanji looks up, "She's in the other tree, I can see her."

Levi glances at them, they know he's grateful. Where is Jaeger? Is he still lumbering around in titan form?

It's Kirstein who notices it first.

"Sir are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"You just have blood-"

"It's not mine." He doesn't know why the boy is making a strange noise until he finally gets out, "Eren."

Levi and Armin snap their gaze to him, "the blood, it's fading. It's not red on the edges. That's what happened when Marco-"

Levi stops paying attention because Arlert is calming him and because now he can see the gray creeping in at the edge of the leaves.

"God damn it Eren."

He takes off before Hanji can try to stop him.

It takes three passes of the battlefield – all the while the green continues to fade – before he spots the corpse of Eren's titan form.

Eren isn't far from the nape of the neck, and Levi lands next to him.

He rolls the boy over, and he wheezes.

"Levi."

"Hey Jaeger." He can't see where he's injured, but it seems to be inside, he has no idea what happened, but Eren is fucked up beyond belief and the green is fading from the grass but there's still time because he can still see green.

"Jaeger, you stay with me, that's an order, you hear me?"

Eren shakes his head, "I can't Corporal."

Levi drops the formalities, "Eren, please."

"I'm sorry Levi, I'm so sorry."

Levi brushes the hair out of Eren's eyes, which are still green but the color is bleeding out of them the way life is bleeding out of Eren's body and there's nothing he can do to stop it.

"You're supposed to see the ocean, god damn it."

"I can still see green," Eren whispers, and Levi doesn't care that there's blood staining Eren's teeth, he has to kiss the boy one last time.

Eren's breathing is shallow now and he looks up at Levi with eyes that are almost gray, "I... love you…"

"Love you too," Levi whispers as Eren goes limp in his arms, because he's not letting that go unreturned because he does love Eren and he deserved to know.

Levi doesn't move until his squad arrives, and until they have to take Eren away because there's nothing Levi can do now.

He can't see green anymore.

* * *

I'm sorry for any trauma caused.

Now, to explain a few things about the Universe of this AU.

There are platonic soul mates, which are like your soul mates but in a best friend sort of way. (If you think Jean and Eren aren't friends you can leave now.)

Romantic soul mates are people who are your soul mates, just in love.

Since it's two different things, it works different.

Platonic soul mates' colors don't match.

For example, Eren and Armin. Eren can see blue, Armin can see indigo.

With Mikasa, Eren can see red, she can see blue.

You know it's romantic soul mates if you both get the same color.

Clear?


End file.
